An Abyssal Fate (RWBY Kancolle Crossover AU)
by MegaElite
Summary: On the night Ruby attempted to arrest Roman, she thought she was just going to capture the bad guy and then see Yang off to Beacon. Unfortunately, the chase has a different outcome and far reaching consequences. Now Ruby will rise from the Abyss and make her mark upon the world of Remnant with new and terrifying powers.
1. Chapter 1

A.N. Hello Everyone, this is the first post for something I hope many of you will enjoy. As I couldn't find this elsewhere, I thought "Why not write it myself?" And thusly, here we are.

The basic premise is "What if there were Abyssals on Remnant."

Anyway, enough rambling, onto the story.

XxXxX

Cold

It was a rather odd feeling, Ruby thought as she sunk rapidly towards the bottom of the ocean. She felt colder the deeper she sunk, watching the shattered moon become ever smaller. Blinking, she realized she was so tired. She just wants to sleep. After all, tonight was a rather adventurous night.

XxXxX

Ruby had finally managed to corner the crime boss on the roof top.

"Hey!" She said, grabbing the crime boss's attention

"Persistent." He muttered under his breath.

It was at that moment that she felt a cold lance of pain in her back. She had exhausted her Aura earlier, trying to catch up as he hopped from roof to roof. She turned to look and saw a pink and brown-haired girl, wearing a white overcoat and pants, holding a sword with an umbrella handle coated in red. At this, she fell over, holding her hands at the exit wound on her front. As she fell, she screamed. 'It hurts, why does it hurt so much?'

"Tough luck Red. You really should have run while you could." He turns to the other girl "Take care of her, we can't handle anymore problems with how we have been doing lately." As he says this he turns and goes down the stairwell.

At this, Ruby begins panicking. 'Oh god, oh god, I am going to die. She is going to kill me.' She begins to try to crawl away, hating herself for forgetting her scroll on the nightstand. If only she had it, then maybe she wouldn't have tried to chase this guy so long. She feels another jolt of pain as she is stabbed in her shoulder this time. The girl then picks her up and begins carrying her downstairs. When they reach the bottom floor, Ruby begins smelling salt and realizes that she was incredibly close to the ocean. She is dropped unceremoniously into the hold of a ship. Ruby begins trying to get herself up, desperate to escape, to get home, to be back with her family. As she manages to get to a wall, she begins to hear growling. She turns and is immediately met with a pair of cold, red eyes. She begins to huddle in on herself, whimpering, trying to protect herself as her Crescent Rose was left on that roof top. This only seems to encourage the beast, which immediately sets upon her with a ravenous fury.

After what feels like an eternity, of barely managing to cover herself form the hungry beast, she hears another whimper and sees the beast has been skewered by the girl from earlier. As she looks up to the girl she begs "Please…please I have family I need to get back to."

However, the multi-colored woman ignores her and begins dragging her up to the deck of the ship. Ruby begs and hits the girl with all of her might, which does little more than irritate the girl if her pulling is any indication. Ruby is then tied in rope by the girl, with a weight attached at one end. The other girl begins looking at her before smiling as she stabs Ruby one more time in the chest before pushing Ruby off the deck into the cold, churning water below.

XxXxX

Ruby begins closing her eyes as water begins fill her lungs. After a brief burning in her lungs she begins to black out. But as the last vestiges of consciousness begin to leave her, she manages to form one last thought.

'Sorry Yang, I guess I won't be able to see you off to Beacon. Mom, I'll see you soon. I just wish I could have become a huntress like you.'

XxXxX

After a while, Ruby begins to hear a voice, cold but motherly calling out to her.

After a while, Ruby begins to hear a voice, cold but motherly calling out to her.

"Wake up."

"Please, let me rest. I am so tired."

"Wake up little one. The time of rest has ended."

"I want to, but my time is done. I died."

"But what if I said you could, and that I would be the one to facilitate it?"

At this Ruby opens her eyes, only to be greeted darkness.

"...Really? I can come back? I can see my sister again, I can be a huntress!?"

"Yes, you could see your sister again, and even become the greatest huntress the world has ever seen. There is only one thing I ask in return."

Ruby feels a hand brush her cheek. She slowly raises her hand to meet it .

"What do you want me to do? Please I'll do anything, I can't leave my family."

"All you need to do is agree to become one of my children."

At this, Ruby grabs the hand and pushes it down and away from her, as she begins to look for the source of the voice.

"...What? What do you mean one of your children, who are you?"

At her question, she sees a pair of violet orbs open in the distance. They begin coming closer until they are directly in front of her, cold, featureless, and intimidating. But at the same time, sad? "You may call me Tiamat, but I am also called the Abyss, the Depths. And what I mean by that is simple. My children are my will made manifest, my desires born into flesh. It is the only way I can bring you back."

"Would I be able to be with my family? Yang, Dad, Uncle Qrow?"

At this the eyes look as if they are smiling, before blinking and going back to there previous state. "Of course, I would never separate you from your family."

"And what would you want me to do? I am guessing this isn't going to be free of charge."

At this the eyes begin to slightly narrow as the voice begins to cool. "I would have you merely do what you have trained to do, drive these invaders from the oceans and surface. These 'Grimm' have long overstayed their welcome."

After this the eyes again revert, going back to calmly looking at Ruby. "How can I do that? I am just one girl, don't get me wrong I can try, but I am just one girl."

"Easily, as by becoming one for my children I would give you a form more suiting one of my sweet children. And you won't be alone, I have many children who have been waiting on my word."

"And what about after all of that is said and done?"

"You could do whatever you want, even be the Heroic Huntress who saved the world. I care not, as long as you would be happy. After all, what kind of mother wishes for anything but happiness for her children?" Ruby begins to feel hands gently hold her shoulders. "However there is always a cost associated with this. The Payment for your return is your name."

At this Ruby recoils, and moves away from Tiamat. "What? I thought that the only thing that you were asking for was my help, not my name!"

"That is my price for helping you in the first place. This is the toll to cross back over to the realm of the living, something that not even I can change. And besides it is just your name, just what you are called."

"But, that's my name, how will my family even recognize me when I come back if I don't have my own name? How will they even know that it's me if I look different?"

"But it is simple, you have her eyes, that is one thing this will not take from you. The one thing that binds you to your original mother, that shows you are her daughter. And besides, why would you need it, after all, 'a Rose by any other name is just as sweet.'"

Ruby mulls it over for a bit before final asking "Really? And that's it, no fine print saying you own my soul or something like that?"

The voice rolls its eyes at this, before delivering in the same level tone. "None, I hardly need to lie to achieve my goals. Now, do you agree?"

Ruby considers this for a moment before calmly stating "Deal."

And with that, Ruby's world explodes into blinding pain

XxXxX

Post Script

Alright, so this was the first part, just wanted to get this hammered out. Any review or criticism would be appreciated.


	2. Chapter 2

A.N. Hello everyone, here is chapter 2. I hope you enjoy. Please leave a review.

XxXxX

"Wake up Amaranth"

Ruby, no Amaranth now, began groggily rising from where she was laying. She began rubbing her eyes, before she noticed the cold metal covering her hand.

"Gah, what the heck?" She then fell back over noticing that the same black metal also covered her legs. She bent over her legs to look them over, but as she bent down to examine her feet her eyes met with her reflection in the water beneath her, unbroken despite her sitting on it as if it were solid ground. In it, she was met with a completely unfamiliar visage. Her skin was extraordinarily pale, as if she hadn't been in the sun for years. Her hair, formerly black, was now a similar silvery white that glowed in the moonlight. Her eyes now had a distinctive red glow surround the silver iris. Her clothes now were all black, not even the formerly red cloak had escaped this. She began looking at her hands, now covered in a black, clawed metal gauntlet. Her legs were also covered in this material, going down from her thighs to her ankles. As she began to stand up, she balanced herself, feeling two unfamiliar weights on her lower back. Turning around she was met with the sight of two thick appendage extending from her spine. They were also covered in those same black plates that seemed to cover most of her extremities. As she picked one up to bring it closer, the triangular tip opened and revealed a large maw filled with razor sharp teeth, looking more at home in a shark's mouth than anything else.

"Ahhh! What, what the heck is that, why is it attached to me? Tiamat, you have some explaining to do." As she said this, the other tail opened, revealing a similar visage to the other.

"As I said when I brought you back child, you would become one of my children, and thus you were given a body more befitting one of children. Isn't it beautiful?" Tiamat cooed.

"I mean, I just thought it would be some different hair, maybe a nicer face, heck maybe even some Faunus bits, not, whatever this is!"

At this, Tiamat's voice grew frigid "If it is so much against your liking, I can always take it back."

Ruby grew rigid at this before waving her arms frantically in front of her. "No, no, it is perfectly fine, it just wasn't what I expected exactly."

Tiamat was quiet for a moment before she delivered in her neutral voice. "Good, I would hate to be disrespected like that."

Realizing that now would most certainly be a good time to ask, Ruby promptly asked. "I have to ask though, where am I? How do I get back to shore?"

Tiamat delivered in the same level tone from earlier "Well dear, you are currently standing where you fell into my home. And to get back to shore form here, just turn around and keep going. You will reach it by staying straight ahead. Now before you leave, I can't leave you unable to defend yourself."

As she said this, Ruby saw more than felt a shimmer. On her arm, a gun barrel had appeared, and she had gained boots made of the black metal her gauntlets and leggings were made of. She turned and saw yet more gun barrels on her tails towards the head. She then heard some chittering and saw several small black shapes crawling underneath her cloak.

Ruby turned around, more than a little uncomfortable at the sudden addition of little creatures onto her body. She quickly grabbed one to examine it. What she saw looked vaguely like arrowhead, if they were entirely back and possessed luminescent yellow eyes.

Ruby shuddered as the one she grabbed moved back onto her back, before she asked "Anyway, would you please tell what, er, who these little guys are?"

Tiamat huffed before she stated "Those would be some of your siblings, my darling children. Don't worry, they don't bite, and they can help you defend yourself. In fact, why don't you just see?"

As she said this, one of the Ruby's tails straightened out before some plates on it flattened out. Then, one of the little black things climbed down and stood at the base of her tail. Ruby then felt a small voice asking for permission to take off. Ruby, wondering about what it was going to do, gave permission. The small creature then clicked into place at Ruby's tail before being shot forth at high speeds. Ruby was worried the little thing was going to hit the head of her tail before it suddenly went airborne and began flying around Ruby. It did a few tricks before landing on Ruby's other tail. It then crawled back into place with the rest of the others.

"You may call upon them any time you need help. They are not as powerful as you, but they will be able to give you air support. Now, if you are quite done having me give you an explanation, I would suggest you hurry to shore."

Ruby, deciding that she should probably get going, stood up and began heading forward.

XxXxX

It takes a bit, but Ruby manages to get to the docks relatively quickly. As she makes landfall, she quickly looks around looking for a way to get back home unseen when she hears a loud yell.

"GRIMM!" Shouts a faunus in yellow overalls before he begins running away from Ruby. Realizing what would happen if the man managed to make it back to other people, she quickly chases after the man before she manages to tackle him into the side of one of the warehouses. Ruby quickly covers the man's mouth, grateful no one else was close by, before she looks at him. "Quiet, I am not a Grimm. My name is..." she tried to use her name, but she couldn't even manage to say it. She tried for a bit before she tried using the name Tiamat gave her. "...Amaranth. Would you be able to tell me how to get to Patch?"

The faunus begins struggling and yelling into Ruby's hand, desperate to get out of her grip.

Ruby began panicking as the man's struggles increased. "Please sir I am not trying to hurt you would you please calm down and be quiet?"

The man's struggles increase, before he finally bites Ruby.

At this, Ruby's tails raise up above her shoulders, opening their maws. Ruby tightens her grip on the man's mouth and shoulder and practically shouts "I said Quiet!"

At this the man begins trembling before Amaranth loosens her grip. "Now, once again, how do I get to Patch?"

She briefly uncovers the man's mouth while he shakily whispers, "Just go south a few miles, the ferry should be able to lead you right to it."

At this Ruby's grip relaxes more before she gently holds the man's shoulders "Excellent. And again, please don't tell anyone, I wouldn't want anyone to get the wrong idea."

The man frantically nods as Ruby let's go of him and begins heading south.

XxXxX

Hunyadi counts himself lucky, he didn't expect to be attacked by a talking Grimm of all things while he worked the nightshift. He was just glad that he managed to get away. But he must get back and inform Brother Adam about this, he was capturing Grimm after all.

XxXxX

Post Script: Anyway, I look forward to any reviews or critiques you guys have. Again, next chapter should be up one week from now.


	3. Chapter 3

A.N. Hello Everyone, here is chapter 3. I am planning on updating weekly until this story is finished. I hope you all enjoy the following chapter.

XxXxX

Ruby was starting to think that the guy who told her where the ferry was probably lying. Remembering that she had some air support, Ruby promptly launched a few of the things. Dang, she really needed to give them a name. Maybe crows? She was so deep in thoughts that she didn't notice that she had been surrounded by a group of faunus in masks until she got a report from one of her Crows that she was. She looked around at them before asking "Um, hey look, I don't know what you all are doing out here this late at night, are you lost?"

"No, I think we are exactly where we are supposed to be." Answered a massive bear faunus pulling a massive chainsaw from his back. "You, however, are going to be coming with us Grimm."

Ruby was shocked at this before exclaiming "Me? I am not a Grimm, I mean yeah the pale skin and glowing eyes aren't exactly helping my case, but I am not a grimm." Despite what she is saying Ruby reaches behind her where her scythe would normally be, only to remember that she had lost her baby Crescent Rose. It is at this that Tiamat decides to finally say something.

"Reach and grab one of your Crows. They can do so much more than scouting."

Ruby stumbles a bit at the sound of the familiar voice before whispering "Alright, but after this, I have some questions for you."

Ruby reaches and grabs one from underneath her cloak before she feels its form shifting. By the time she pulls it in front of her. The Crow has changed its shape, now looking like a wicked looking scythe, entirely black except for the silver sheen of the blade and the blue glow of an unblinking eye next to the blade.

The assembled Faunus hesitate at the sight, before she says "This would be a good time to walk away. Now if any of you can-"

Just as she is about to continue, she ducks and avoids a sword swung by one of the faunus who had snuck behind her before promptly moving to disarm the woman. Unfortunately, this is a bit more literal than she intended as her scythe shears through the woman's arms.

Ruby begins panicking, not meaning to have done such serious damage to the lady but is interrupted by the bear faunus yelling "Brothers and Sisters of the White Fang, capture this monster for the White Fang. Charge!"

Ruby's instincts and training kick in as soon as she hears that word. She levels her cannon at one of the groups of charging faunus before firing, causing a large explosion. She then continues to fire around her, doing her best to place out of her mind the image of the aftermath of the White Fang being hit. As she is doing this though, some of the White Fang eventually begin to close the distance. As they begin to come closer, Ruby begins swinging her scythe rapidly, aiming at the approaching foes' arms and legs, rather than their more vital points.

Ruby rapidly becomes a tornado of blades as she twists and turns to hit the approaching faunus, barely managing to not aim at their torsos and necks. She stops as she notices that none of these White Fang are still up and moving. However, just as she begins lowering her scythe to catch her breath, she is reminded of the existence of the bear faunus as she feels the sharp, tearing pain of his chainsaw. She then flips and puts some distance between her and the man. She puts a hand to her back and then brings her hand in front of her. She notices then that her hand is covered in a strange blue substance that she realizes must be her blood. She looks back up to the bear faunus who is now laughing.

"Ahahaha, and here I thought you might be untouchable. It's good to now you bleed like the rest. Almost reminds of that blonde bitch I fought earlier."

At this, Ruby's heart freezes and she begins to hyper ventilate. 'No' she thinks 'He can't be talking about Yang. She wouldn't be beaten by a loser like him. Even then her Aura should have protected her and, hell, it would have charged her semblance' But despite this, Ruby begins to look at this man and can't help but dread, that maybe Yang was caught and killed by this man. She falls to her knees as she hears him approaching closer.

XxXxX

Umbra begins raising his chainsaw. It wouldn't do to leave a beast like this alive. The damn thing had torn apart the muscle he had come with, leaving their bodies strewn about the place. He had no idea where it had gotten a damn gun that could cause that much destruction at, but damn if he wasn't going to take it off it's body afterwards. Umbra swing his chainsaw down at the thing but is stopped when he feels it stop suddenly, He looks up and sees that the monster had risen up and had caught his weapon in one of its tails, which had opened at the tip to reveal a mouth filled with teeth. It was then that he looked down to see it looking right at him, its formerly silver iris a solid red.

XxXxX

Never had Ruby been so angry. She began wondering if this is how Yang felt whenever she used her semblance. 'That is, if she is still alive'. Ruby's vision was red as she began feeling her body move almost without any input from her. He had to hurt hurt hurt hurt hurt HURT HURT HURT HURT HURT!

XxXxX

Umbra attempted to free his chainsaw as he is suddenly kicked by the damn monster. He straightens himself before looking up to see it crushing his chainsaw with it tails, which seem to devour the pieces. Now, Umbra might not be as bright as others within the fang, but he is smart enough to realize when he has lost. He turns and begins running, determined to get this news back to Adam, that next time they should bring more troops to kill this damn thing, when he suddenly falls flat on his face. He looks down to where his legs should be, only to see stumps where his kneecaps should be. He then notices the tails from earlier, now feasting upon his legs as it keeps its keeps moving toward him. He begins to try and crawl away, desperate to escape this damn thing. How the hell the damn thing got through his Aura, he has no clue, but he still has some and he can hopefully use it to avoid dying. He feels the boot on his back crack down before he lets out a piercing shriek. As he begins to black out, the last thing he thinks is 'It was right. It's not a Grimm but a damn demon.'

XxXxX

Post Script

Alright, so that was definitely something. I will say though, I am not at all confident in my ability to write a fight/action scene so any feedback regarding would be well appreciated.


	4. Interlude 1

A.N. Hello everyone, this is Chapter is an interlude, but I do hope everyone enjoys it regardless. The next Chapter will be posted on Friday next week as I am going to be doing some travelling that weekend and will be unable to post on Saturday.

XxXxX

Glynda Goodwitch arrived at the site of the crime more than a little wary. The number of times the police force called in a huntsmen were few and far between, as funding was split between the two for the kingdom's self defense budget. If they were willing to call Ozpin and ask for her, then something was incredibly wrong. With this on her mind, she marched into the field tent.

"Alright, what is the situation here? I assume since you have called me in this isn't just a hit and run." She stated to the group gathered under the tent.

One of the people turned, revealing themselves to be a detective. "Ah, you must be the Huntress Oz sent. And yeah, you are damn right this isn't even close to normal. We have 46 casualties, of which there is 23 current fatalities. All of which are White Fang"

Glynda's eyes widened at the number. How did so many get involved and not end up causing a minor grimm attack? The amount of anger would have at least incensed the grimm present in the Emerald forest to attack. Her thoughts were interrupted when the detective continued.

"And that even the worst bit, it looks most of them were hit by a damn ship cannon. Don't know who these Fangers pissed off, but apparently they were packing some major heat."

"A ship cannon? You are positive?"

"Look, that's why you are here, I'll take you down to the actual crime scene."

XxXxX

The crime scene, if one could even call it that, more closely resembled a butchery floor with the amount of gore and viscera present with a large amount of structural damage around. Despite the large amount of blood, there was few body bags. Looking around, Glynda could see why the police thought it was ship cannon fire.

The detective moved his arm as if to showcase the carnage. "So, look like this place was plastered with artillery fire or what?"

Glynda sighed at the man's tone, clearly none too enthused to be working with a huntress. "Clearly. And I can't see any clear signs this was semblance usage, but the thing is that if there was a ship capable of causing this kind of destruction we would have noticed."

"Oh, and what makes you say that. Every ship has cannons, have to if you want to make it across the ocean in one piece."

"Because, if you examine the scorch marks, this wasn't that would fit on a civilian boat. Look at the impact crater." She points to the nearest one. "The normal civilian ship has 2 12-inch cannons to deal with sea based grimm. This kind of crater was caused by an 18-inch cannon."

The detective scoffed at this "That doesn't sound that big. Plus, what kind of difference would that even make?"

Glynda pinched the bridge of her nose at the detective's idiocy. "What it means, detective, is that the only thing that could have held that kind of fire power would have been a heavy battleship. Which, in case you don't know, are typically just under a thousand feet in length. It would be like if someone put the Beacon CCT Tower in the water."

The detective paled at this, now sufficiently informed.

Glynda continued "The problem here is, not only would we have seen it, the whole city should have heard it. But we heard nothing, I didn't even know this had happened until I was contacted. But no one heard anything or saw anything." Glynda rose up before walking around, examining the scene further. "The other thing is, the marks are originating from the same point over by those crates. I would normally say this is a semblance at use, but few semblances are capable of this, all of which belong to registered Huntsmen."

The Detective thought at this a moment before saying "But can't anyone end up with any kind of semblance if they have their aura unlocked? Could it be a crime lord that got his Aura unlocked?"

Glynda shook her head "The problem with that, is that semblances with this kind of destructive capability are closely monitored by the kingdoms. If someone were to get a semblance like this and be found using it for anything criminal, they would get a kill order after them. And even then, as I am to be aware there are still large tells showing it was a semblance, such as heat warping."

The detective then shot back "But could this have been discovering their semblance?"

With this idea in mind, Glynda then got up preparing to leave and inquire with registry when she heard a yell go out.

"Medic! We found someone else! And get the Huntress over here!"

XxXxX

Glynda rushed to voice and what she saw when she arrived was horrific. Beneath the medic, who was attempting to look for vitals, was a body missing its entire lower half. The detective, who had followed after Glynda, immediately began retching as he arrived. It wasn't just that the body was bisected, but that it had appeared to have been eaten to the waist. She moved down, investigating the wound. The wounds were not caused by any of the species of grimm found in Vale. As she continued to look, she felt a sudden grab and pull on her wrist. Shocked, Glynda looked to the source of this to discover it was the not so dead body.

The man pulled Glynda closer before hoarsely whispering "What did this to me was no Grimm. It was no man. It was a demon. When you find it, kill it for all of our sakes." With this, the man let go of her before he was hoisted upon a stretcher.

XxXxX

Glynda was in the Bullhead, flying back to Beacon when she called Ozpin.

"Hello, Glynda. What is it?"

"Ozpin, get everyone we have in Vale together, I have something major to report."

Startled by this, Ozpin reiterated "Glynda, what did you find at the crime scene?"

"Ozpin, I think we may be dealing with something from the Black Queen."

"Alright, I'll see you when you get back. Head to the Chamber. I'll call Ironwood and Qrow."

Glynda hung up, hoping against hope that Salem wasn't unleashing a new trick from her bag.

XxXxX

Post Script.

Alright, so a bit shorter than most of the other chapters, but I hope this cleared up some stuff for all of you. Any reviews or comments would be wonderfully appreciated.


	5. Chapter 4

A.N. Hello everyone, sorry for the delay in posting. I had something come up and was gone much longer than I initially intended to be. Anyway, since I was unable to post up a chapter last week you are getting two this week. Thank you to everyone who continues to read this story.

XxXxX

Ruby woke with a start. Her head felt as if it was subjected to being Yang's punching bag. When she looked around, she noticed that she was no longer in Vale. Instead of towering buildings and the hustle and bustle of the city, there was instead the quiet lapping of waves against a sandy coast. The sun was low in the sky, seeming to sink into the ocean below.

"What happened? I don't remember how I got here?" Ruby asked herself. Hoping to have the ever-familiar droll tone of Tiamat's voice answer her question, she was sadly disappointed as only silence replied. Ruby then began trying to summon her equipment and discovered that she was still able to. Ruby breathed a sigh of relief, and tried to have her Crows go and scout, but as she tried, she felt nothing. Looking behind her, Ruby saw that all of her Crows were damaged.

'What the heck happened to me after that guy hit me? Why can't I remember anything after he hit me?'

With that thought in mind, Ruby began heading out on foot, deciding that she should look for landmarks to find out where she was.

XxXxX

After walking long into the night, Ruby finally sat down with her tails splayed behind her and looked out at ocean. She knew she was on an island, but she wasn't sure which. She didn't have any problems seeing at night, despite the lack of the moon, but she couldn't seem to recognize where she was. However, just as she was preparing to fall asleep, she heard her voice again.

"Amaranth, are you there?"

"Tiamat, is that you? Where the heck were you all day?"

"I apologize Amaranth, but something forced all of my attention from you."

"And what was that?"

"Something you don't need to know of at this point in time. All you need to know is it was important enough to cause me to take my attention off you, my youngest child."

Ruby sighed, deciding to drop the issue. Tiamat, outside of her cold demeanor, hadn't given her too many reasons to not trust her.

"Alright, but do you know what happened to me, I don't remember anything after that guy with a chainsaw hit me."

"I can not exactly tell what you are doing at all times. I may be powerful, but I am not omniscient."

"Would you at least be able to tell me where I ended up at least? I don't recognize anything around me."

"I am surprised you don't recognize it, dear Amaranth, especially considering this is where you spent most of your old life."

At this Ruby stood ram rod straight.

"I am on Patch? I should have recognized something then, I have been all over the island."

"Perhaps your memory is growing faulty, especially considering that you can't even remember the events from the previous night."

Ruby clutched her head and began trembling. If she couldn't remember her own home, what else was she going to forget? Would she forget about Crescent Rose? Zwei? Dad? Yang? Mom? As she began to cry, she felt a calming presence wash over her.

"Do not worry my dear Amaranth, I won't let you forget anything else, so worry not."

Ruby continued to cry but felt comforted by the gesture. Ruby decided then that she would not forget her family, and that even if she forgot everything else, she would remember them.

XxXxX

After a she finished crying and managed to collect herself, Ruby looked up and noticed that now the sun was beginning to rise.

"Tiamat, would you be able to tell me where I am on Patch? I wanted to go see someone."

"Of course, I will lead you there. But first, I think you should head into the water."

"Okay, but could I ask why? I can get there just as fast on land as I can by going over water."

"Sweetie, it is because the Oceans are my domain. If you step into it, it can strengthen and heal you, as you are my child."

"Well, why didn't you say anything earlier?"

"I thought you would have figured it out, considering it is where you were raised from."

Ruby, embarrassed, laughed at this and moved to scratch her hair when her hands felt something smooth in her hair. She moved closer to the water to see her reflection. When she parted her hair, she saw that two black nubs were beginning to grow from her scalp.

"Hey Tiamat, why am I growing horns?"

"It means you are growing into your body. Do not worry about it."

"Does this mean I am going through puberty again? I hated it the first time!"

Tiamat laughed at this. "I do believe that is the first time I have heard it described as such, but I suppose it is not entirely wrong. As you age and gain experience, you grow in power, and one of the signs of that are those horns. Your body will also change in other ways to become more efficient in handling that power. But I would worry about that later, for now I believe you would like to repair those Crows of yours?"

Ruby decided to go ahead and take care of the Crows and began walking into the water until she was entirely submerged. As soon as she was, she immediately felt refreshed and rested. As she continued to wait, she noticed that she didn't feel like she had to hold her breath. In fact, she continued to breathe as though she was breathing air. Filing it under as some more powers that Tiamat had, she decided now was a good of time as ever to ask.

"Hey Tiamat. Why did you decide to help me in the first place?"

"To be truthful, it was because as I felt you enter my water, I knew you had ended far before you should have. You had not lived a full life yet, and I knew I could do something, so I decided to help. Besides, I am always eager to have more children."

Ruby smiled at this before she fell asleep, comforted by the water around her.

XxXxX

When Ruby next woke up, she immediately walked back out onto the shore. As the sun was still high in the sky, she determined that she hadn't been out for more than a few hours. After summoning and checking her equipment to make sure her Crows were prepared, Ruby mentally called to Tiamat.

"Alright dear." Tiamat called out "You are in the eastern corner of the island of Patch. Good luck. If you need me, just call to me, as I must go and handle other matters."

With a quick nod and a thank you, Ruby began heading northward.

"I am coming home."

XxXxX

Post Script. Once again, I am terribly sorry for missing last week. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter. Please, leave a review.


	6. Chapter 5

A.N. Thank you to everyone who has been reviewing. I have been reading them and I do appreciate them.

XxXxX

When Ruby had arrived, it was quiet. Despite the summer heat, the normal ever-present sounds of insects were absent. In front of her, the cliffside with her mother's gravestone now had a partner.

Ruby Rose

 _And from Love's shining circle, the gem drops away._

Ruby drops to her knees.

"Hey mom. It's been a while, since I came by. A lot happened since I visited in the winter. Yang got into Beacon. And I stopped a robbery. But I kinda died after that. Dad always said I needed to be more careful. But surprise, I guess. I'm not dead! Well, anymore at least. I made a deal, with this lady, Tiamat, and I came back. But ever since I came back, I changed. I look like some weird albino lady mixed with Grimm stuff. I am not even sure Yang and Dad would even recognize me with how I look now. And, that's not all. I, I didn't realize that I was on Patch, and I forgot what I did before that. Every time I try remembering anything about it, all I remember is being angry."

Ruby pauses for a second, realizing she was starting to hyperventilate. After taking a bit to calm down, she continues.

"I just wish you were here. I don't know what to do. I am going to try to talk to everyone back home, but so far, the only people I have met since I started looking like...this, have all tried to hurt or kill me. What if they do the same? I'm not sure I could handle it."

As she finished say this, she heard a click from directly behind her.

"Stand up. Slowly."

Ruby tensed as she recognized the voice.

"Uncle Qrow?"

"It wasn't enough to take her from us, was it? No, you take her and do this with her." Qrow mumbled. Raising his voice back to it's previous commanding tone, Qrow continued. "I said stand up. I don't know why Salem made you look like her, but clearly you are aware enough to not be just any Grimm."

Standing and turning around, Ruby looked at her uncle. He looked far more haggard then Ruby remembered ever seeing him, worse than he was when her mother died. The normal scent of alcohol was far stronger as well.

"Uncle Qrow, it's me."

"Shut up! I don't know why Salem decided to send you here to do her dirty work, but it doesn't matter. You aren't Ruby." The tone of his voice startled Ruby. She had never heard him talk like this, not even when he was furious at her and Yang for bending one of Harbinger's barrels. And now that same weapon was pointed at her.

"Uncle Qrow, please it's me. I know I've been gone for a bit, but it's me." Ruby pleads.

"No, it isn't. You are just some Grimm made to look like her. Now, either start talking about why Salem sent you or I am just going to shoot you."

Ruby was crying now. She knew she looked different, but she had still held a small hope he would at least be able to tell it was her.

"Please Uncle Qrow, please believe me. I don't even know who this 'Salem' you are talking about. Please, it is me. It's me your Little Petal."

Ruby barely reacts in time to block the shot with one of her tails. She is speechless as she looks at the smoking barrel. She looks at her uncle, not believing what has just happened.

"Don't want to talk, that's fine. Wanted to work off some steam anyway." And with that he launches forward, swinging his great-sword. Ruby begins blocking using her tails. She refuses to summon her equipment, hoping that maybe if she doesn't attack, he will realize it is her. That he will know it is her. She begins trying to dodge when one of Qrow's blows bite into her left tail. She rapidly backs away using her tails to gain extra ground. Her back to the sea, she looks up to her uncle, and all she can see in his eyes is hatred. Why, why can't he see it is her?

"She isn't even dead for 3 months and your Master decides to do this? I swear, I am going to hunt that bitch down and kill her myself. After I kill you, you damn fake." He snarls. He promptly changes Harbinger to its scythe form and goes back to taking swings at her, far faster and deadlier.

Ruby freezes as she hears that. 'I am a fake?' Ruby's world grinds to a halt as she processes this. 'Is that why I am forgetting things?' With her thoughts stuck on this, Ruby is unable to react in time. She looks down to where her left hand was supposed to be, only to see her arm a stump at her elbow. Ruby watches as her forearm falls into the ocean below her. Ruby releases a primal cry for aid.

XxXxX

Deep in the depths of the sea, something hears the call of one of her siblings obviously in distress. She begins stirring, awakening after a decade long slumber, moving to assist her sister who was in trouble. Her other sisters near her begin to stir, all moving as one to their sister. After all, wasn't that what family was for?

XxXxX

Ruby was crying. Qrow hadn't even hesitated when he cut off her arm. Was this how she died again. Killed by her uncle who refused to believe her. Just as she lowers her head, preparing to accept her death, she hears a small voice calling out to her.

"..ster"

Ruby doesn't quite hear them, but focuses on the voice coming in.

"Sister! Hold on we are coming."

Ruby gasps at this. Her sister was coming? Yang was coming?

"Not quite Amaranth. Didn't you remember, when I raised you, that you would join my family as one of my children."

"Tiamat?" Ruby shouts in her mind. "You mean that…"

"Yes, your Sisters are coming to save you from that former Uncle of yours."

"Don't worry Amaranth, Big sis _Tenebris_ is coming to help. He won't hurt you anymore, now get ready to head into the ocean, we'll blow him to bits."

XxXxX

As Qrow begins moving forward to deliver the death blow to the thing masquerading as Ruby, he heard a series cannons firing. He manages to back away in enough time, before he sees something that causes him to freeze in his tracks. Coming from the sea are no less than two dozen other Grimm, some humanoid like the Ruby imposter in front of him, and far more that were increasingly more monstrous. As he looks down and sees the Ruby faker slowly backing away. He manages to dodge the incoming shells, but he is still flung back by the blast. As he manages to look back up, he notices that the entire cliff side had fallen into the ocean. As he rushes to look out, he notices that all the Grimm, humanoid or otherwise, had disappeared.

'Damnit' He thinks to himself 'I gotta call this into Oz. He needs to know what Salem has up her sleeves.' As he turns on his scroll, however he notices that he has a missed message from Glynda.

XxXxX

At the base of the cliffs, now sinking into the ocean, the two monuments for a lost Mother and Daughter remained together as they sunk to the bottom. However, as they continued to float down, they struck a rock, separating the land that had conjoined them together. The younger of the two then began rolling down, further and further before falling into the abyss.

XxXxX

Post Script:

Well this was interesting to write. I hope you all enjoy this. Please, leave a review or just any thoughts you have about all of this.


	7. Interlude 2

A.N. I am happy to see the response that this is getting. This one is another interlude to end off the Arc. I hope this will answer some of questions I noticed people asking. Big thanks to Dragon of Hope over on Spacebattles.

XxXxX

It was a tense gathering in Ozpin's office. Everyone was on edge from the reports Glynda and Qrow delivered.

"Alright, Qrow did you notice any weakness of this, simulacrum?" Ozpin asked, hoping to alleviate everyone's worries.

"Definitely. It didn't possess an Aura, it was still damn tough, but not as hard as a Goliath. But it felt like I was trying to cut through a damn Bullhead." Qrow answered, reeking of alcohol.

"On the other hand, it appears as if it possesses a ranged capability not unlike one of my battleships." Added James "Not to mention, it appears Salem managed to discover a way to resurrect the dead, given that she possessed Silver Eyes. Ozpin, if she can do that, she can use every single Huntsman and Huntress we have ever lost against us. We need a plan to deal with this."

Ozpin sighed, 'It was a terrible thing to lose such a young prodigy, and then to see her turned against her own family. Salem has to be stopped, no matter the cost, if she is willing to stoop to using the dead.' However, it was Glynda who interrupted his thoughts.

"Qrow, I know it must have been terrible fighting that thing pretending to be your niece, but there is something about what you said that doesn't match up."

"And what would that be, because I am all ears about hearing how what I saw was wrong."

"If the crime at the docks and your fight are indeed from the same individual, then why don't you have anything worse than a strained leg? The one who started the altercation ripped a man in half and caused enough destruction to total a section of the docks and kill over 30 aura users."

Qrow rolled his eyes before responding. "I saw plenty of those type of Grimm there, it could have been one of them."

"And yet, the eye witness reports of the description of the perpetrator are the same as the one you described. Something isn't matching up, Qrow, and you would've noticed if you weren't drunk when you were fighting."

"Oh, how could I forget, miss Investigator Goodwitch, top of her division until her partner got slaughtered by a pack of Beowolves, please tell me how you would have been dealing with things in my position huh? Because that damn thing was wearing my Nieces face like it was a costume."

Glynda had frozen halfway through Qrow's response. She whipped out her crop and was beginning to channel her semblance when Ozpin interrupted.

"Qrow, that is enough. Glynda, please calm down and continue when you are ready."

Glynda took a moment before she lowered her weapon and continued again.

"It doesn't make any sense. Whatever the thing that tore up the docks was, it destroyed and killed with impunity and had the firepower of a ship. You may be one of our best Qrow, but you aren't bullet proof, especially with that semblance of yours. The thing you fought, whatever it really was, didn't immediately start attacking you. It may have more of a mind then any of the other grimm. We may be able to reason with it!"

"That doesn't change the threat they pose! It doesn't matter if they have a shred of their old personality, they are still following Salem's orders! We need a plan, I am not going to be the General who allowed Atlas and the other Kingdoms to fall!"

Ozpin looked towards the hologram of James, looking over the rest of the group, before his eyes fell on him again. "James, tensions are clearly high, I think we should possibly reconvene tomorrow. It has been a long night for all of us.

James returned the look Ozpin was giving him for a moment before breaking eye contact. "Fine. I will present some options tomorrow. Good night." And with that, the hologram flickered before disappearing entirely. Ozpin looked back to Qrow and Glynda, who were both staring at the spot where the hologram disappeared. Qrow was the first to speak up.

"I am going to go, talk to Tai. Someone's gotta tell him. I'll be back tomorrow." Immediately after finishing his sentence, Qrow got into the elevator and headed down.

Ozpin looked at Glynda, who was gripping her crop with a white knuckled grip. "Glynda." He called, causing her to turn to face him and loosening her grip. "How is team PWYN (Periwinkle)."

"Well sir…"

XxXxX

Yang Xiao Long, as she was doing so often nowadays, was in Vale. It had been three months since they declared Ruby deceased. But Yang refused to believe it. People had managed to come back after being missing for years. Her dad and team had told her that she was hoping for something that wasn't there. That Ruby had been separated from Crescent Rose, and that even if she had managed to get away, she wouldn't live long separated from her weapon. But she didn't believe them. They didn't know Ruby like she did. She was fast, she was smart, she wouldn't just die like that. Yang arrived at Junior's bar, intent on getting information. She laughed bitterly. This is where she was when Ruby went missing. Maybe this time it would help find her sister.

As Yang walked to the bar, the gang members gave her a large berth. She approached the bar and flagged down a tired looking Junior.

"Hey. You know why I am here."

Junior sighed as he put down the mug he was cleaning and moved to where Yang was.

"Look, Blondie, I don't know how many times I need to tell you the same story. I get it, it is hard losing family like that. But coming back every other night and asking me isn't going to change the answer."

Yang growled as she slammed her hand down on the counter.

"She's not dead damnit! People can always remember things after a while, your guy might have gotten something wrong, like he did when he waited a week to give the actual story to the cops."

Junior sighed, having dealt with her coming in again and again for the last three months.

"And we dealt with that. Kid, I know I have shown you where they found her weapon. With that much blood around, there is no way she would have lived long after."

"She had Aura, it might have helped her hold on. She could have just gone into shock and been picked up by one of the boats heading out."

Junior prepared to call the girl's team to come and pick her up when one his guys came running in through the front doors.

"Boss! You have to hear about this."

Both Yang and Junior turned to look at the man. He ran up to the counter and placed down a photo. When Junior grabbed it and looked, he was shocked in what he saw. An entire section of the docks blown to bits and littered with splotches of red. He turned back to the man. "Well, what's the story behind this?"

"You know the bits of the docks we recommended Torchwick to use? That's them. Apparently, some White Fang had found something and tried to fight, and they lost, bad. 30 of the local chapter are dead."

Junior was more than a bit shocked to hear this. After the cops had caught Roman, the Fang had practically disappeared from the city. He hadn't even heard of them holding a rally in the last month. To hear that almost half of them had died was a shock.

"Any idea what messed them up that badly?"

Another photo quickly was slid down. Before Junior could grab it, Yang had picked it up. It was blurry and grainy, clear taken with a scroll. But in it was one thing that shook Yang to her core. A figure, clearly hooded was facing the camera. Nothing could be made out from under the hood except for a pair of gleaming silver eyes. Yang began shaking as she was looking at the photo. Junior began moving closer to see what was up before Yang's head shot up. Her eyes, now blazing red, were focused on the man who had come in.

"Where did you get this?"

"Well…"

XxXxX

Alright, this should finish off the first Arc. The next arc starts next week. Once again, any and all commentary would be appreciated. Thank you for continuing to read An Abyssal Fate.


	8. Chapter 6

A.N. This marks the start of the second arc. Not much else to say but enjoy the chapter.

XxXxX

 _Ruby was walking through a field of light red flowers, which seemed to go on forever. She looked down, and saw that she looked like she normally did, Crescent Rose strapped to her back, her favorite red cloak billowing behind her. As she walked around, she saw her family, Yang, Qrow, and Dad, standing in front of her._

" _Guys! I am back, see I am fine!" But as she called this out and ran toward them, she noticed something was amiss. They turned around, and each of their faces was filled with a visage of hatred and contempt. The first to speak was Yang._

" _My sister wasn't some Grimm thing. She wasn't a killer."_

 _Ruby slowed to a stop before she replied. "I'm not a grimm, or a killer. I wouldn't kill anyone, I wouldn't."_

" _The what is in your hands?"_

 _Now in Ruby's hands was a heart. When Ruby dropped it in shock, she saw the bear faunus, laying beneath her. She started backing away before she turned and began running. She saw another horrible sight when she stopped. It was her, and she was reveling in the ashes of a village. Ruby fell to the ground shivering._

" _Why, why is this happening. That's not me, I wouldn't do that."_

 _As she sat there, shaking, she saw a woman in a white cloak, standing some distance away. She knew this woman; how could she forget her? She began crawling to her, before gripping the hem of the woman's cloak._

" _Mommy, please, this wasn't me. I came back. Please come with me, so they can know I wouldn't do something like this."_

 _As Ruby Rose looked up, crying, hoping desperately that her mother of all people would recognize her._

 _Summer Rose turned to her daughter and smiled. She kneeled and held Ruby for a moment. She then looked into her eyes and spoke._

" _I would love to Petal, but how can I when you killed me."_

 _Ruby gasped and looked down, seeing how her arm, now covered in wicked black plate, was shoved through her mother's torso._

XxXxX

Ruby shot up from the bed she had been laying on, breathing heavily. She looked down and saw her hands, covered in a smooth black plate tipped with claws. It took her a few moments to remember that this what she looked like now.

'Wait Hands?' Indeed, where before there had been a stump, her forearm was now back where it was. 'How did that happen? I thought Qrow had cut it off?' And did that thought make her blood boil. Her Uncle, who taught her how to use a scythe, who came over every break, who had promised he would always be there for her, had cut her arm off. The next time they met she would **rip him to pieces**. She shook her head and went back to thinking about how her arm had gotten fixed. She knew Tiamat could help her recover, but she didn't imagine it would be to this extent. As she pondered this, it was a more genial voice that interrupted her thoughts.

"Oh, you're awake, how are you feeling?" Ruby turned to the voice and was beyond surprised. There was a woman, and she couldn't be anything but, who stood as tall as the room they were in. She was paler than Ruby herself, with white hair that reached the small of her back. She wore what could be generously described as a white sweater. But her most defining wasn't any of this, or her glowing orange eyes, it was the massive horn jutting from her forehead. As Ruby was taking all of this in, the strange woman continued. "Oh, where are my manners. My name is Nova Ater, but everyone just calls me Atera. I am the repair woman for the Vale Abyssal Fleet headquarters. You are very lucky we managed to recover your arm, otherwise you'd be in here much longer while I machined up a replacement."

Ruby shook her head before interrupting the woman. "Hold on, slow down there. I barely understood any of what you said. Firstly, nice to meet you, I am Amaranth. Second, what the heck is an Abyssal? And what did you mean by you were a repair woman?"

Atera, as she was now named, stopped. "You mean you don't know. Usually all of us are born with that kind of knowledge already known."

Ruby shook her head "Well I wasn't. Tiamat didn't tell me much when she brought me back."

Atera eyes widened as she heard Ruby's response. "You mean mother directly brought you back? And that you remember when you were brought back?"

Ruby slowly nodded her head. "Yes? Why is that important?"

Atera put a hand on Ruby's shoulder and pushed her back onto the bed and sat down herself. "Amaranth, I suppose I should answer your question first. Abyssals are beings, like you and me, made by Mother. We aren't human, not before and most certainly not now. We are beings of metal, raised from the souls of the ships discarded by humanity. Most of us don't even remember that, only knowing we are Abyssals and what our names are. Some don't even get a name, only a designation. When any of us remember something from before, it usually means that mother has something important planned for you."

Ruby had stopped listening halfway through. She knew she had changed, and drastically, but to learn she wasn't even made of flesh and blood anymore shook her world view. Was she a monster now? The only other thing like her was Grimm, was she the same as them? Ruby suddenly felt a large weight on her, only to realize that it was Atera hugging her.

"Oh Amaranth, you are not a monster, and you aren't at fault. The only ones at fault are those **demons** above water. They threw us all away, they got rid of us after our usefulness was through."

Ruby returned the hug before quietly speaking "But I wasn't a ship before this. I was just a girl who got killed."

Atera tightened her hug and whispered back "That just means you are special. And it means I get to love and protect my new little sister even more."

Ruby proceeded to cry, both for her lost humanity and family, as well as for her new one.


End file.
